(London, 11th Feb) The British Association of Mixed Martial Arts (BAMMA) is excited to announce that, for the very first time, Mixed Martial Arts fans around the world will be able to experience BAMMA 5 LIVE via www.bammatv.com

Vice President of Business Development, Liam Fisher said: We want to do everything we can to grow this sport and show fans outside of the UK exactly what our country has to offer. This is just one step towards this goal.

Weve been looking at international streaming for some time and it makes total sense to kick this off with BAMMA 5. Paul Daley Vs Yuya Shirai is one of the most internationally significant MMA fights so far this year and bridges together 3 different MMA promotions. It would be a crime to not show this fight around the world.

BAMMA has already been pioneering in bringing MMA to mainstream UK audiences live on non subscription, non pay per view TV: SyFy channel will be hosting all five BAMMA events this year starting with the much hyped BAMMA 5. Now with its live streaming BAMMA crosses new frontiers in bringing the cream of what the UK has to offer to fight fans across the globe.

Over 835,000 viewers tuned in to watch BAMMA 4 which saw Alex Reid and Middleweight Champ, Tom Kong Watson go to war in a live televised bout making it the most viewed UK MMA event ever. With the new SyFy and streaming deals in action, BAMMA is truly leading the way in establishing British MMA on the world stage

The PPV will be priced at

 $10 for the live broadcast
 $5 for a repeat screening via On-Demand
 $12 for the live streaming plus unlimited on-demand for 7 days after the event.

www.bammatv.com goes live on Monday 14th February with fans able to pay from Monday 21st onwards.

You’ve all been asking me for news regarding BAMMA being on television, since Bravo shut down recently. The news was released to day that BAMMA 5 and the rest of this years BAMMA fights will be on the SyFy channel on SkyTV.

The deal with SyFy means that BAMMA will be the UK’s first ever full, live, non-subscription Mixed Martial Arts show ever. All five BAMMA fights will be covered this year, starting off with the BAMMA 5, headlined by top UK Welterweight, Paul Daley vs DEEP welterweight champion, Yuha Shirai. This is the first fight to held at the M.E.N Arena, and is the first to be held outside of London or Birmingham.

According to Liam Fisher, Vice President of Business Development at BAMMA : “2011 is a very exciting year for MMA in the UK and a great time to be a fan of the world’s fastest growing sport. Our deal with Syfy will not only allow us to present all five events completely live, but it will also deliver the sport to a whole new breed of MMA fans. Our ongoing commitment to growing this fantastic sport has just increased massively with the aid of Syfy and it feels great to part of such a partnership.

Anybody who is a fan of British MMA will know who Tom “Kong” Watson is. One of the brightest prospects in the MMA world that isn’t signed up to one of the big companies, if Watson continues to crush opponents then we might be watching the Greg Jackson trained fighter continuing his career for the UFC or Strikeforce.

Until then, he continues to dominate the Middleweight division of BAMMA and his next scheduled fight is against Alex Reid (of marrying Jordan fame) at BAMMA 4 on September 25th.

Check out this video

Hey Tom, how are you doing?

I’m great thanks.

Now for those who don’t really know about your career and aren’t up to date on British fighters such as yourself, can you tell us about your career so far?

I have 12 wins and 3 losses. I fought on Cage Rage for most of my career, more recently I’ve fought in MFC and BAMMA.

Two of your three losses have come by way of submission, yet you haven’t lost that way since. After those two losses, did you make it a point to work on your ground game as you’re obviously quite the striker?

I had only really done boxing when I first started fighting MMA so it was inevitable I would get submitted against the guys that I did fight. Both opponents had had nearly 50 fights each and were Pride and UFC veterans. I take the sport seriously and train BJJ and No-Gi as much if not more than striking now.

How do you feel about the state of British MMA at the moment? I think a few people were impressed with a lot of fighters that fought when Cage Rage was about. Do you feel that there any other companies that are working towards gaining the sort of following that Cage Rage once had?

BAMMA’s last card was arguably up there with some of the Cage Rage’s cards. I actually think the state of UK MMA is much better right now. Domestically there are 4 or 5 high level shows with good Domestic and European fights. Plus, we have the UFC here a few times every year.

Who has been the toughest fighter you’ve fought so far and what did you learn from the experience?

Toughest fight was my last one, but it wasn’t because of Horwich, it was because I couldn’t see properly. The toughest opponent I have fought would be ‘Professor X’ Xavier Foupa Pokem, as I had only had three fights and he had over 30.

What do you feel are your strengths when it comes to fighting and what do you want to work on?

No one comes in better shape and is mentally tougher than me. I want to work on everything to get better every day.

You’ve moved out to Canada to train at Zahabi MMA and you’re also training at Greg Jackson’s gym? Has the quality in training really accelerated since you moved to these gyms?

I’ve been at Greg Jacksons for three years; this is my home and I haven’t lost since I’ve been here. I went up to Canada to experience a new environment and I have learnt many great things here and formed some great relationships. I hope to continue to work up here with my coaches Eric O’Keefe and all the other guys in Montreal.

What is a normal training schedule for you and how often do you train before a fight?

I train 3-4 times per day Monday to Friday, and once on Saturday with Sunday off. I’ll take a week off after a fight, and sometimes not even that.

After the Middleweight season of “The Ultimate Fighter”, has it ever crossed your mind that you should apply for a show like that?

Many things cross my mind but what matters is what I choose to do and this show has not been relevant for me up to this point in time.

There’s been a lot of talk in regards to you fighting Alex Reid. Can you explain how all this came about and why there have been so many stops and starts in regards to this fight happening?

Mr Reid got injured and couldn’t fight at BAMMA 3; it has been re arranged for BAMMA 4 on Sept 25th.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?

Having so many friends around the world due to MMA.

What are your biggest aspirations in regards to your career in the future?

To become the best fighter in my weight class, simple.

Thanks for your time Tom. Is there anyone you’d like to thank?

Too many people… all my coaches and training partners, friends and family for putting up with me and most importantly my sponsors TapouT, VAS, Full Tilt Poker for helping me financially in trying to be the best.